The Bet
by AnimeGuyLove-R14
Summary: Ichigo has noticed his lover's hair has gotten quite long. The reason is far from what he expected. Byakuya may seem like an easy person to figure out, but underneath that cold exterior is a wealth of thoughts and emotions.


**Summary:**

Ichigo has noticed his lover's hair has gotten quite long. The reason is far from what he expected. Byakuya may seem like an easy person to figure out, but underneath that cold exterior is a wealth of thoughts and emotions.

**Notes:**

So this is the first fanfic I have ever posted. I have written some but never posted. I really like how this one turned out though and thought, why the heck not, and here we are. It is short and sweet and fluffy. I tried to keep the characters in character, as much as you can in an AU fic. Thanks for checking this out and reading. Please leave a comment if you feel like it :)

**Minor edits made: 12/12/19**

…

"Your hair is getting long Byakuya." Ichigo murmured as he ran his fingers through his lover's hair. It had grown to just past halfway down the noble's back.

They were lying in bed together, quietly talking and enjoying each other's company.

"Do you dislike it?" Byakuya turned his head slightly to kiss the inside of Ichigo's wrist when it neared his lips.

"Mmm, of course not, you know I love your hair. And besides, it would make me a hypocrite to tell you your hair is too long. Mine has gotten down to my hips. Rukia has been teaching me ways to put it up out of the way."

"Hm."

"Why the change? You've had your hair the same length since I met you, and Ukitake-san mentioned you've had it around the same length from a young age..."

"...Senbonzakura and I had a conversation correlating reiatsu to length of hair a while ago." Byakuya began seriously.

"...and what was the verdict," Ichigo asked, just as seriously, trying not to laugh.

His lover may act emotionless to the general public, but anyone who had spoken to Senbonzakura, or had gotten close enough for Byakuya to drop his masks, for any length of time, could see that underneath the surface Byakuya was full of emotions. Brimming with them really. And both he and his Zanpakutô shared a trait Ichigo found hysterical. They often thought and acted like children.

Well, not as in being immature, or throwing tantrums, or yelling, but Byakuya could hold a grudge for the most childish reasons. He was a closet fan of sweets that were cute looking, and he had a hidden collection of Ambassador Seaweed memorabilia. And he would get into pointless arguments and debates with his Zanpakutô. 

This appeared to be another such debate.

"We concluded that the longer a being's hair, the higher that being's reiatsu is sure to be. Shingami, Arrancar, Visored and so on. Some of strongest among our ranks have longer hair lengths. Ukitake Taicho, Kyouraku Taicho, and Hirako Taicho to name a few examples.

Regarding growth over time, we noticed as with Ukitake Taicho, as their power increased so did their hair length. There were some exceptions; such as Ikkaku fukutaicho who has always been without hair, and Komamura Taicho who has hair covering his body. There are also those who prefer a shorter length, such as Muguruma Taicho and Primera Espada Stark. We also accounted for those whose hair becomes longer with the release of their Zanpakutô, such as Cuatro Espada Ulquiorra and Sexta Jaegerjaquez."

"You really have put a lot of thought into this Byakuya. To be honest, I'm impressed. I've never noticed. But you are certainly right. A Shinigami, or other being, with high levels of reiyoku often has longer hair. Aizen at the height of his power had very long hair. I suppose it could be that warriors who are stronger would not be hindered by something as trivial as dress or hair length like a lesser fighter would be." Ichigo said half stunned.

Byakuya gave a pleased half smirk. "It was brought to my attention when Zaraki Taicho made an uncouth comment about your hair." Steel entered his eyes at the mention of the crazy captain.

"Really? What did he say?" Ichigo puzzled.

"He said you were beginning to look like a woman, and that it better not hinder your ability to fight him." Byakuya coldly seethed.

"Haha. That does sound like something that Kenpachi would care about."

"Our conclusion proves his concerns invalid. You are the strongest being in the Three Worlds bar the Soul King. Something like the length of your hair would not have any effect on your abilities." Byakuya finished with conviction.

Ichigo gave a quiet chuckle. His lover really was precious.  
Instead of replying he gave the man a kiss to show his pleasure.

They both became so thoroughly distracted with each other, that it wasn't until much later that Ichigo realized Byakuya hadn't answered his question.

As they were drifting off to sleep, Ichigo sleepily said, "Byakuya?"

"Hmm."

"You never did tell me why you decided to grow out your hair."

"..."

"You are one of the most powerful Shinigami in Soul Society, you aren't the type who would grow your hair longer to prove that. Anyone who's seen you fight knows you're formidable."

"You're are correct. The reason I have not cut it is because after our conversation Senbonzakura mentioned that his hair is several times longer than mine. He argued that, according to our logic, he is the stronger warrior between ourselves because of this." Byakuya paused with a small furrow between his brows.

"I could not let this slight to my pride stand. Senbonzakura should know his place after his defeat by my own hand during the Muramasa debacle. Senbonzakura is quite stubborn, however, and challenged me to a battle of strength. The price being my right to wield him as my Zanpakutô. For fair judgment, I am lengthening my hair to that of Senbonzakura's," Byakuya finished seriously.

Thoughts of sleep a distant memory, Ichigo stared into his noble lover's determined gaze.

He couldn't help it this time.

He laughed himself to tears.


End file.
